News

More doctors, nurses for TCH emergency department

The emergency department at The Canberra Hospital will gain an extra 39 staff in 2016-17 and a further 15 workers by the end of the 2019-20 financial year as part of a $29 million commitment in next week’s ACT Budget.

A spend of $3.8 million in the 2016-17 financial year will fund four new doctors, 24 new nurses, 10 new allied health workers and one new administrative position for the ED. The remaining $25.2 million will fund those positions and those of the 15 additional hires in the three years that follow.

The recruitment process will begin shortly and continue in line with the rollout of the emergency department expansion.

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A $23 million expansion of the emergency department was first announced in 2014 with the first stage delivered in February this year. Overall the expansion delivers an extra 1000 square metres of floor space, a 30 per cent increase in treatment spaces within new and refurbished areas and three more ambulance bays.

Minister for Health Simon Corbell said the government had taken a three-tiered approach to improving waiting times and hospital performance by focusing on infrastructure, staffing and reforms.

“These additional staff will be an essential boost to the capability of our emergency department and will go a long way toward improving the timeliness of care provided at Canberra Hospital, particularly in emergency,” Mr Corbell said.

“Earlier this year we began a process of reform in the Canberra Hospital emergency department that is improving the efficiency and access to public health services and allows our committed doctors, nurses and other hospital staff to continue to deliver high quality care in a way that allows them to meet national targets for timeliness.

“The Canberra Hospital emergency department has seen growth in demand of around 20% over the last two to three years, and we need to manage and meet that demand, so extra beds and extra doctors and nurses is the Government’s priority.”

The Government would focus efforts on making sure that bed management was improved in the hospital, so that people could move through to the beds that they need in a timely way, Mr Corbell said.

“The reform agenda has identified that there are sufficient beds inside The Canberra Hospital at the moment. The key issue is central coordination, and that’s why we’ve established the central bed management unit, it’s why we’re focused on improving communication between the wards and the emergency department through the new roles such as the ED navigator and others.”

Barr desperate to pull the wool of over Canberrans eyes, trying to pump a little cash into hospitals that are the most expensive in Australia and worst performing.
Just like his rate freeze announcement, which will be reversed next year if he is elected again, God forbid, when he needs cash for light rail
bah bah sheeple

It isn’t a Annual Rates increase “freeze” – just not as much of an avg. increase for the 2016-17 year as previously flagged. Given that there will apparently be only a marginal reduction in the near record level of the Territory budget deficit, u have to wonder why the 2016-17 Annual Rates announcement. Yeah – thats right, its an election year !!!

How cynical is that. How much longer will ACT voters and Ratepayers stand being treated like fools, like sheep, by this ACT Labor/Greens Government. Quite frankly, it’s insulting.

But will ACT Labor/Greens be returned to power ? Unfortunately, probably- because of the apathy and stupidity of ACT voters & ratepayers.

Barr desperate to pull the wool of over Canberrans eyes, trying to pump a little cash into hospitals that are the most expensive in Australia and worst performing.
Just like his rate freeze announcement, which will be reversed next year if he is elected again, God forbid, when he needs cash for light rail
bah bah sheeple

Good to hear. Having been admitted to hospital last year via emergency and having belongings go missing (hospital staff not interested in finding out who took my belongings, Bad luck they’re not in the safe was their reply whenever I complained) Just hope that all staff are police checked!

It seems to be a problem at the hospital too. A friend had a wallet go missing there too, and I’ve heard of others having wallets etc go missing there too.

Meanwhile, Calvary hospital is losing almost $400million in Federal funding cuts over the next 10 years. There isn’t enough beds but plenty of spots to park, so why not relocate the doctors across the road and have a drive through triage process? If only we didn’t have to build a tram, but instead spent that money where it really is needed and benefits the whole population instead of a select few.

Hmm, as a question, is the problem capacity of throughput in ED the issue or is beds in the rest of the hospital that ED patients can go to the issue? I know that in other hospitals frequently the issue with ED is the availability of beds in the rest of the hospital to put ED patients in so that they can then move on to the next patient.

We need an election every year – seems its the only way to get some focus on fiscal priorities by this ACT Labor/Greens Gov’t.

I would like to see one jurno – just one – ask Mr Corbell and Mr Barr how come they let the situation slide so badly that our main hospital, despite the growing population, became the worst performing in the country. It didn’t happen overnight. So, what are they going to do to stop it happening again ?????

As long as Fairfax and the ABC are the only mainstream media in Canberra that will not happen.

You can hardly tell that its an election year.
Where’s all the money coming from?

From the avg.10% increase in Annual Rates each year – apparently forever now. With all these signing of Light Rail contracts and the other election year/vote bribing sweeteners being thrown around, no one seems to care about the near record Territory budget deficit. At the end of the day, someone has to pay for this ACT Gov’t spend-a-thon.

We need an election every year – seems its the only way to get some focus on fiscal priorities by this ACT Labor/Greens Gov’t.

I would like to see one jurno – just one – ask Mr Corbell and Mr Barr how come they let the situation slide so badly that our main hospital, despite the growing population, became the worst performing in the country. It didn’t happen overnight. So, what are they going to do to stop it happening again ?????

Amendments to give renters more rights have passed the Legislative Assembly. It will be easier for renters to keep a pet, make minor modifications to their rental property, and to break a lease without incurring significant costs https://t.co/UG9YEv9ilQ(9 hours ago)